On this day in 1928, The Walt Disney Corporation released the animated short “Steamboat Willie”, the first fully synchronized sound cartoon. It was directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. Disney considers this release to be Mickey’s birthday.

And now…The Mash!

We begin in England, where pub companies warn that the price of a pint is about to jump. Factors include inflation, higher costs of doing business, and the introduction of the living wage.

Game of Thrones actor Jason Momoa showed off his axe-throwing skills in an Instagram video. What makes his performance even more impressive is that he drank a beer immediately before he hit the bulls-eye.

FIFA, the world-wide governing body of soccer, is negotiating with officials of host country Qatar over whether beer will be served there during matches at the 2022 World Cup.

Effective January 1, 2019, Labatt will discontinue the 50-year-old tradition of issuing free beer for life to company retirees. The Canadian brewery is now owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev.

Travel blogger Emmanuel Marshall used Innis & Gunn IPA as currency to pay for transportation and lodging on his 5,000-mile trip from Scotland, the home of Innis & Gunn, to India.

Scientists at Rockefeller University have found that beer pong players expose themselves to numerous icky bacteria. The good news is that college-aged players have strong enough immune systems to cope with them.

Finally, the San Diego Union-Tribune named the five beers that put the city on the craft beer map: AleSmith Speedway Stout, Ballast Point Sculpin IPA, Green Flash Le Freak, Karl Strauss Red Trolley, and Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale.

On this day in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution took effect. It was ratified 42 years after Aaron Sargent, a Republican from California, first introduced a women’s suffrage resolution in the Senate.

And now…The Mash!

We begin in Rio de Janiero, where souvenir cups of Ambev’s beer Skol were wildly popular at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Some fans spent hundreds of dollars to get Skol’s complete 42-cup collection.

With The Beer Tie, you can make a fashion statement and enjoy your beer at the same time. The tie is made of the same insulating, waterproof neoprene material as a standard drink koozie.

How much beer must “Bender”, the robot from Futurama, drink in order to keep his battery powered? According to Megan Logan of Inverse magazine, it’s 2.7 million liters. Per day.

The museum store at the Arizona Capitol could start selling local beer this fall. Alcohol isn’t exactly banned at the Capitol. Lawmakers are known to cary red Solo cups during late-night sessions.

The Innis & Gunn brewery offers a virtual-reality trip to Scotland to be enjoyed with a pint. The scientist who helped create the VR says that it connects the brain with the beer’s oak-aged tones.

Twenty-one years ago, Norwegian police ended an airplane hijacking by persuading the hijacker—who had been drinking heavily—to swap his loaded gun for a fresh supply of beer.

Finally, Suicide Squad actress Margot Robbie is a big fan of shower beers. She said that after a tough day of shooting, an ice-cold beer in a boiling-hot shower helps her fall asleep.

Draft magazine saluted craft brewers’ ingenuity by listing ten instances where they turned calamity into opportunity. These brewers suffered mislabeled ingredients, severe weather, and malfunctioning equipment, among other disasters. Instead of throwing out the messy ingredients, they improvised; the result was a popular—and in at least two instances, award-winning–beer.

The most interesting story involves Innis & Gunn Original. It began when Dougal Sharp, then the head brewer at Caledonian Brewery in Edinburgh, brewed a Scottish ale for a distillery, which intended to use the ale to season its barrels. Distillery workers, however, loved the beer so much that they sneaked it home in bottles and empty buckets. Sharp, who knew he’d inadvertently brewed a winner, founded Innis & Gunn, which makes the original oak-aged ale to this day.

On this date in 1907, Sir Robert Baden-Powell set up the Brownsea Island Scout camp on the south coast of England. That nine-day event—we assume that no beer was served to campers—was the foundation of the Scouting movement.

And now…The Mash!

We begin in Scotland, where the Innis & Gunn brewery has released a “Vintage” beer that is meant to be aged. One bottle has been put inside a time capsule, which is not to be opened until 2116.

Old Style beer will return to its La Crosse, Wisconsin, birthplace. The brewery will make an Oktoberfest-style version of the 114-year-old brand for the city’s annual Oktoberfest U.S.A.

After winning his third Tour de France, Britain’s Chris Froome celebrated in style. In the Tour’s final stage, he handed out bottles of beer to his teammates.

According to the libertarian magazine Reason, state beer laws continued “a slow creep in the right direction.” However, many bad laws remain on the books.

The Smithsonian has posted a want ad for a beer historian/scholar. This three-year position, funded by the Brewers Association, will pay $64,650 plus benefits.

Some breweries try too hard to be original, and wind up giving their beers awful names. Thrillist.com calls out some of the worst offenders.

Finally, Jim Vorel of Atlanta magazine criticizes Terrapin Brewing Company for selling a majority interest to MillerCoors—and then keeping mum about the transaction on social media.

Eighty-five years ago today, Pluto was officially named. Upon its discovery, Pluto was recognized as the solar system’s ninth planet. However, in 2006 the International Astronomical Union’s formal definition of “planet,” resulted in Pluto’s demotion to dwarf-planet status.

And now….The Mash!

We begin in Wisconsin, where the fifth annual Madison Beer Week kicks off today. Co-founder Jeffrey Glazer talks about the growth of Beer Week and how beer culture has changed in Madison.

If you’re on the Paleo Diet, grain-based beer is off the menu. Scientists say it shouldn’t be. Our ancestors were creative enough to turn both grain and fruit into alcoholic beverages.

Nicolette Wenzell of the Palm Springs Historical Society takes us back to the 1950s, when the El Mirador Hotel hosted a weekly Bavarian Night. The event became so popular that local stores stocked lederhosen and felt hats.

Anti-alcohol groups are criticizing Ben & Jerry’s for getting into the beer business. The ice-cream maker is collaborating with New Belgium Brewing Company to make Salted Caramel Brownie Brown Ale, to be released this fall.

Notable NBA draft bust Darko Milicic has embarked on a new career in the world of kickboxing. He’s also perfected the art of chugging a beer with no hands.

Finally, the owners of Scottish brewery Brewdog have big plans. They hope to expand their brewery, and add a distillery and a hotel to the operation. Also on the drawing board: opening 15 to 20 Brewdog bars across the U.K.

On this day in 1918, Czechoslovakia gained independence after being part of Austria-Hungary for centuries. Unfortunately, Czech citizens still had to endure Nazi occupation, then 40 years of Communism. Is it any wonder that they rank first in the world in per-capita beer consumption?

And now….The Mash!

We begin in England, where the Ember pub group rolled out a fresh-hop ale that took just 100 hours to go from the hop field to the customer’s glass. The beer debuted during the NovEmber Ale Festival.

The Great Lakes Brewing Company plans to bring out a holiday double feature: its Christmas Ale; and Mitchell’s Christmas Ale Ginger Snap ice cream, which will be made from residual Christmas Ale.

Australian regulators busted a liquor store that hiked the price of a case of beer by 20 percent, then blamed the higher price on a new Aussie tax on carbon–which won’t take effect until next July.

Here’s a story that gave Paul a law school flashback. In England, a Staffordshire terrier that bit a young boy faces the death penalty under the Dangerous Dogs Act. However, the dog’s owner asked for clemency on the grounds that a relative fed it a bottle of Stella Artois.

Water makes up 90 percent or more of most beers, but it’s getting scarcer in much of the United States. The prospect of shortages is forcing breweries to make more efficient use of water.

Finally, Ludwig salutes the Cairngorm Brewery in Aviemore, Scotland, which brewed Wildcat Ale to raise funds to save the Highland Tiger, an endangered feline whose numbers have been reduced to around 400.

In Britain, the latest Cask Report is out, and the numbers show that cask ale continues to gain fans–especially among women and younger drinkers.

According to the report, the cask ale market grew last year by five percent, compared to a two-percent decline in the UK’s total beer market; and it now accounts for 15.2 percent of beer sold in pubs. Foodies are helping the trend along, choosing cask ale instead of wine with their meal.

One other interesting finding involves Scotland, where the craft brewing segment is booming: last year, cask ale production rose by 31 percent.

If you’re interested in reading the entire report, you can find it here.

To get to Scotland’s Old Forge pub, you either have to hike 18 miles through the wilderness or take a seven-mile boat trip through choppy waters. How does such a remote establishment survive? Quite nicely, thank you. People flock here for the food (haggis lasagna, anyone?), locally-brewed ale, and impromptu musical entertainment.

Or perhaps you’d like to own the Old Forge. All you need to do is come up with £790,000 (about $1.25 million), and convince the present owners that you’ll keep its spirit alive. And find your way there and back.